I am doing a series on insights from Stoic philosophy for how to live well. Some people may wonder, why focus on the Stoics when you have the Bible? Isn’t what is best in the Stoics contained in the Bible? If so, why not just use the Bible?
Here’s a few answers. First, the Bible is not meant to be read in isolation from the world. The Bible gives us a framework for understanding reality. Knowledge of reality and a framework for understanding it go hand in hand. The more we know of reality, the better we will understand the Bible and vice versa. In addition, on our own, we can only learn so much about reality. We need other people to help us understand it. The Stoics are just one group that I’ve found particularly helpful. Continue reading “Stoicism and Christianity”
Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26).
Jesus tells us to take a look at God’s creation, particularly the birds of the air. You can see the birds early in the morning looking around for food. It seems to be merely a natural process. The worms ate organic material that the cells inside their bodies turn into worm, and the birds eat the worms which the mechanisms in their body turn into bird. It’s amazing to think of all the mechanisms involved.
Above and beyond this process, Jesus tells us, God is superintending it so that He can really be said to “feed the birds.” There are real secondary causes in this process, but God is the ultimate cause of the birds having food. Continue reading “God Will Take Care of You”
In times of extremely dangerous threats, it can be hard to see hope.
The time of Isaiah the prophet was one such time (8th century B.C.). For a long time, the kingdoms of Israel and Judah had enjoyed relative prosperity without major threat of invasion. Now, the Assyrian Empire was brutally subjugating the territories around them and menacing the nations of Israel and Judah.
As this threat arose, Isaiah called on the people to consider the state of their lives. Were they living the right way? What were they living for? Had they forgotten the needy around them? Were they living for luxury and sensual pleasure rather than finding their enjoyment in God? This was a time for introspection (see Isaiah 1).
But it was also a time in which the people needed hope. Scary times don’t seem like times to hope. They seem like times for fear and fear. It’s very easy in those times to see only the threats and not see the things that are above them and beyond them.
So, Isaiah preached hope. He preached about a time when a descendant of their kings (from the house of David, see Isaiah 11:1, 10) would rise and create a glorious, prosperous, and peaceful kingdom. Isaiah describes this kingdom using different pictures, like those of the animal world. In this kingdom, for example, the lion will lie down with the lamb. This is the emblem under which he represents the amazing peace of the kingdom of the future King.
Not only that, the nations would actually submit to this King, and this would usher in peace and justice throughout the world. “In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious” (Isaiah 11:10). It would be a glorious worldwide kingdom of peace and justice.
The Apostle Paul was a Jewish Rabbi who was nourished on those promises and looked forward to their fulfillment. He was looking for God to intervene and set up that kingdom. In Jesus, Paul saw a threat to this future kingdom. He was so upset by people following Jesus that he sought to imprison anyone who followed Jesus.
Then, all of a sudden, Paul shows up in Damascus, Syria arguing with everybody that Jesus was in fact the very King Isaiah was predicting! What in the world happened?
According to Paul, Jesus was alive, though crucified, and he met the risen Jesus on the way to Damascus. As he explains it, Jesus spoke to him in a vision so convincing that it changed his life forever. In addition, he was convinced that Jesus was not only the King for the Jews but for the entire world. He saw it as His mission to tell everybody about this risen King.
Years later, Paul wrote a letter to the followers of Jesus in the great city of Rome. As he reflected on Jews and Gentiles coming together to confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, he realized that all that Isaiah had prophesied was coming to fulfillment. He writes, “And again, Isaiah says, ‘The Root of Jesse will spring up, one who will arise to rule over the nations; in him the Gentiles will hope'” (Rom. 15:12).
And we are still seeing it fulfilled in our day. In the past 100 years, we have seen more people from more nations become followers of Jesus and submit to His reign than ever before. In places where the name of Jesus was unknown, prayers and praises to Him ring out all over the world. There is much more to come, but Jesus is reigning now.
So, we have more reason to hope than Isaiah did. Isaiah could only see the kingdom far off. We have seen it fulfilled in Jesus who said that the kingdom of heaven was here because He was here. We have seen it fulfilled in people submitting to His reign all over the world.
It’s easy to lose sight of that hope in the midst of a dangerous threat. We need to remind ourselves and one another of the reality that Jesus is now reigning and His kingdom is expanding over all the earth. That is the hope beyond the headlines.
It’s not always easy to see and feel this hope. To see and feel it more clearly and fully, we need God’s help. That’s why the Apostle Paul told the followers of Jesus in Ephesus that he continually prayed that God would enlighten their eyes to see the greatness of Jesus’ power and reign (see Eph. 1:18–23).
The more they could see it, the more they would become what Richard Lovelace calls “a new center for the reordering of life on earth as it is in heaven” (Dynamics of Spiritual Life, 47). Jesus wants His reign to manifest itself in how we live as people of His kingdom in every sphere of life: family, business, school, state, the arts, and everywhere else.
But we don’t have to do it alone. God has given us the church to help us. One of the major purposes of the church is to equip people to make an impact on the world, living out Jesus’ reign in all of life (see my explanation of the four major purposes of the church here). How do we help each other do that?
We pray for each other to see the reign of Jesus more clearly like Paul did for the church in Ephesus.
We seek to make the church look more like the kingdom of God. We accept one another and “make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification” (Romans 15:7, 14:19).
We help each other think through what it means for us to live out our lives, marriages, parenting, work, and play in light of Jesus’ reign.
We pray for God’s leading and working in each aspect of our daily lives, not just the so-called “spiritual” parts.
If we do this, we can really become a people who live in light of the hope that comes from the reign of Jesus, even in the darkest hours. This is the day of Jesus’ reign. God will help us and answer our prayer, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:13).
When we look for community, our basic tendency is to ask, what will this community do for me? Will they like me? Will they accept me? Can they help me?
The biblical approach to community is very different. Instead of asking, what can this community do for me, it asks, what can I do for this community? How can I love it, serve it, and accept it?
A great description of this perspective is found in Romans 15:1–13. It was a community with significant differences based on the different perspectives of Jews and Gentiles who both believed in Jesus. There was significant reason to think that either this community would not be good for them or to think that everyone had to be the same in order to make it a supportive community. Instead, God told them how to do it.
We bear with each other (v. 1). Every person we meet will be at a different place than us. On a variety of biblical issues, moral issues, and character, there will be significant differences. We need to recognize that people progress at different levels at different rates with different thinking and bear with others. Love is patient.
We seek to please others (v. 1b and 2a). We should not approach things in such a way that wants everything to be our way. We should be ready to yield, especially in matters that are indifferent. It is a totally different perspective to ask, what would please others here rather than, what would please me?
We seek to build others up (v. 2). We don’t merely want to leave people where they are. We want to help them grow, to build them up. We should ask not merely, what do I need for my growth, but what would help others grow? We should encourage them when we see them doing good and making progress. We should use words that will help them take the next steps.
We accept people. “Accept one another, just as Christ accepted you.” So often our basic attitude toward others is judgment. What if our basic attitude was acceptance? I think it’s important to see that this not only means that we love people. We like them. We appreciate them. We value the gifts and good things they bring to the table.
If we followed these prescriptions, this would make a better community. Everyone would be loved, everyone would be cared for, and everyone would be encouraged.
So, where do we get the idea that this is the way we should build community? Jesus.
Jesus led the way. That’s how He lived. He thought of others and their good. He did not please Himself. He was willing to bear with people and move toward them, even when they reproached Him (v. 3).
It’s important, however, that we see how Jesus was able to live this way. He was able to live this way because His life wasn’t centered in other people. His life was centered on His heavenly Father. He was filled with all joy and peace because He trusted in His heavenly Father. And that’s how we can get the power to build a better community. We need to love people, but we need to be centered on the Father.
From our perspective, we are centered on a relationship with the Triune God. We are centered on the fact that we as believers have a loving relationship with the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Note what God says to us in Romans 15:7, “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” When we believe that Christ has accepted us, then we will be in a position to accept others. And note, Jesus not only loves us, He likes us. He made us and values who we are and the gifts and good things we bring to the table. He gave Himself on the cross to cover our sins. When our lives are centered on this fact, then we will be in a position to build a better community.
I believe God wants us to experience a lot more joy and peace than we generally do. He made us to be a people of joy and peace, and He redeems us to experience His love in a way that fills us with joy and peace (Romans 15:13). Recently, when I shared this with a friend, she asked me, “How in the world do I fit pursuit of joy and peace into my extremely busy life? I already feel overwhelmed!”
Before I give some advice on that, let me just reiterate that I don’t think that joy is something that is an optional add-on for the Christian life. It’s right at the heart of the kingdom. “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14:17). This is rooted in our creation. We are created to experience joy in God as our highest goal. The Westminster Shorter Catechism begins, “What is the chief end of man? To glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” Joy is what it’s all about.
In addition, there is a connection between joy and all our other duties and responsibilities. If we are filled with joy, we can serve more readily and more easily. We can be more efficient. A sorrowful, heavy heart keeps us from moving forward. The more joy we can feel, the more easily we can move.
So, how do we do it?
First, remember that joy is a gift of the Holy Spirit, and it is readily available to all who ask.
Second, ask for the gift. Begin your day with even a brief meditation on God and His goodness. Think of how He made you, takes care of you, loves you, redeems you, and is present with you to guide you, lead you, and comfort you. Then, pray for your day and ask God to fill you with His joy. Do this every day.
Third, schedule some time for thoughtful reflection, even if it’s only 10 minutes a week. When you do that, ask, What kept me from joy and peace this week? Then ask, how could I have thought differently about that situation or seen God’s goodness in a way that would have enabled me to continue to experience joy? Finally, write down what your thought is or record it in mp3 on your phone, just some way in which you can review it.
This third point is the key practice. I find that there are two ways that can really help you thoughtfully reflect on your life. The first is to write down what happened, to journal. I think this is best because it provides a record of where you’ve been. The second is to talk about it with someone you trust, i.e., verbal processing. You can do both or either. The key is to do it.
Fourth, keep doing it.
And that’s it. If you do these things week by week, I think you’ll be surprised how much progress you will make in a year and how much God will work in your life.
I am doing a series on insights from Stoic philosophy for how to live well. Some people may wonder, why focus on the Stoics when you have the Bible? Isn’t what is best in the Stoics contained in the Bible? If so, why not just use the Bible?
Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26).
In times of extremely dangerous threats, it can be hard to see hope. 
When we look for community, our basic tendency is to ask, what will this community do for me? Will they like me? Will they accept me? Can they help me?
I believe God wants us to experience a lot more joy and peace than we generally do. He made us to be a people of joy and peace, and He redeems us to experience His love in a way that fills us with joy and peace (Romans 15:13). Recently, when I shared this with a friend, she asked me, “How in the world do I fit pursuit of joy and peace into my extremely busy life? I already feel overwhelmed!”